In response to numerous industry requests, CCO has announced plans to develop a new certification program for individuals serving as Assembly/Disassembly Directors (A/D Directors). The initiative aims to address prevalent confusion surrounding the role of an A/D Director and ensure that those certified by CCO possess the necessary competence to safely manage the assembly and disassembly of cranes on job sites.
ASME B30 and OSHA both delineate requirements for A/D Directors, emphasizing the need for qualification and competence. Under OSHA regulations, an A/D Director must possess both knowledge of relevant issues and the ability to effectively address them. Certification is envisioned as a means to guarantee that certified A/D Directors can responsibly oversee the entire assembly/disassembly process and associated personnel.
Recognizing the challenge of finding one individual who is both “qualified and competent,” OSHA allows for a competent person to be assisted by one or more qualified persons in the A/D Director role (OSHA 1926.1404(a)). For instance, in the case of a large crawler crane, the assembly crew supervisor may serve as the competent person, supported by a manufacturer representative, soils engineer, mat engineer, etc. Certifying the competent person as the A/D Director ensures that the individual performing all necessary tasks is indeed qualified for the role.
Volunteers are currently being sought for the task force responsible for developing the new CCO A/D Director certification program, scheduled to commence this fall. Subject matter experts from various industry segments, including users, manufacturers, consultants, labor, government/regulatory bodies, insurance, owners, and associations, are invited to apply for a position on the task force by submitting an application form.
The task force will comprise experts from diverse fields, guided by CCO’s psychometricians and exam developers. Additionally, experts will serve as item writers to formulate exam questions. Similar to existing CCO certification programs, the development process for the new A/D Director program will involve a professional job task analysis as the foundation for exam development.
Bob Mahlman, CCO Director of Certification, has outlined the timeline for program development, spanning from the third quarter of 2023 to the second quarter of 2024. The goal is to complete the program within 12 months of the initial meeting. Emphasizing CCO’s commitment to high standards, Mahlman highlighted that the program would adhere to strict psychometric standards, ensuring fairness, validity, reliability, and legal defensibility.
With its extensive experience in developing certification programs for the load handling industry, CCO is positioned as the ideal organization for creating the A/D Director certification program. Established in 1995 as an independent, non-profit organization, CCO has garnered a reputation as the gold standard for operator and related certifications. Over the past twenty-eight years, CCO has conducted over 1.5 million examinations and issued more than 726,000 ANSI-accredited and OSHA-compliant certifications across 14 certification programs.
